Automobiles have at least two pedals for speed modulation: the gas pedal for acceleration and the brake pedal for decelerating and stopping the vehicle. The location of both these pedals in the vehicle allows operation by only the right foot of the driver. Therefore, driver needs to move the right foot from one pedal to the other.
Automobiles equipped with automatic gearboxes also have two pedals for modulating speed: a gas pedal for acceleration and a brake pedal for decelerating and stopping. In such vehicles, the two pedals are located in front of the driver on the right side, so the driver uses only his/her right foot to operate either pedal. The main reason for preserving this historic arrangement from standard vehicles is that this way the driver cannot operate both pedals simultaneously, consequently stalling the engine and losing control of the vehicle.
This typical pedal arrangement has at least the following inconveniences:
Moving the right foot from the gas pedal to the brake pedal requests a time that adds to the braking time, i.e. the time spent from the moment the driver decides to apply the brakes to the moment the vehicle comes to a full stop;
Drivers with right foot/leg mobility problems may take more time to move from one pedal to the other. They may also experience pain in the right foot/leg, which can constitute a distraction from the task of driving;
Professional drivers experience pain in their right knee more often than occasional ones, in a statistically significant manner. This is the result of excessive wear of the knee due to repetitive motion of the leg, required to operate both pedals.
Some drivers try to address these deficiencies by left foot braking. Unfortunately, the location of the brake pedal, being meant for use with the right foot, makes its operation by the left foot rather awkward. In addition to that, reacting inertial loads is more difficult without the left foot firmly supported by the dead pedal. Another issue with left foot braking is the possibility of simultaneously pressing both pedals and consequently stalling the engine and by that losing control of the vehicle. Even drivers who regularly use this mode of operating the vehicle pedals admit that such an event may occur in a moment of panic.
Another attempt at correcting the second deficiency consists in mounting a device over the existent pedals transforming them from right foot pedals to left foot pedals. Such a design is good for drivers who cannot use but their left foot for operating the vehicle pedals. Nevertheless, this is still a one-foot solution and in fact transforms all the drawbacks generated by the right-foot-only operation of the pedals into drawbacks created by a left-foot-only operation.
Other difficulties with conventional systems would be appreciated in view of the description below.